A single DELETE statement can remove multiple rows when the WHERE clause matches more than one record.
Businesses often remove groups of records such as inactive users, cancelled orders, expired sessions, or old log files in one operation.
A company removes all employees whose employment status is 'Resigned'.
DELETE FROM Employees
WHERE EmploymentStatus = 'Resigned';Multiple-row DELETE operations are common in database cleanup, compliance activities, archiving, and maintenance jobs.
- Deletes multiple matching rows.
- Uses one SQL statement.
- Supports complex conditions.
- Can combine AND and OR operators.
- Works efficiently with indexed columns.
- Can be rolled back inside transactions.
- Always verify affected records.
Can one DELETE statement remove multiple records?
Yes. Every row matching the WHERE condition is deleted.
What is a good practice before deleting multiple rows?
Execute a SELECT statement using the same WHERE condition to verify the affected records.